Nina and Leo are the hosts of the popular cooking contest, ‘The Next Cooking Champ!’, and behind the scenes are brutal to each other. Nina resents how easily charming Leo can be, and Leo is intimidated by Nina’s skill as a chef and often feels out of place on the show. Both accepted the gig to bring more patrons to their respective restaurants; Nina to the restaurant she built from the ground up, and Leo to his family’s chain restaurant legacy.

During the last episode of their third season, Leo steps over the line in his banter with Nina during the live season finale and Nina addresses the cameras and quits the show. Without Nina, the show doesn’t want to use Leo and would prefer to get two totally different hosts. With both of their restaurants falling on hard times, they try to rectify the damage done by staging a fake relationship between them. But will it be enough to save what they’ve both worked so hard to create?

This book was a dream for this enemies to lovers fan! The chemistry between the two is super charged. Each secretly enjoy pressing the others’ buttons, but come to understand where the other is coming from, and why their critiques are often so hurtful. Leo has panic attacks and isn’t taking care of his mental health. Nina struggles as a woman in a male dominated career and has issues with critical and hurtful comments on social media that are sexist in nature.

There is so much more to this book than simply a love story. There are so many mistakes made by each character in making assumptions about the other, and so many missteps that come about unintentionally. It was a joy to watch them learn more about themselves, and to admit their failings and their own mistakes in their treatment of each other. Add in some amazing supporting characters, and I was immediately hooked on this book.

Thanks to Harlequin Publishing for providing me with an ARC of this book.

Not for me. As much as I like the idea the overall execution wasn't my favorite. I didn't like Leo as a character and the entire plot dragged. I wouldn't be opposed to reading something else by Erin La Rose, perhaps this particular story wasn't for me.

3.5 stars

The thing that drew me to this book was the concept. I mean, two co-stars on a cooking reality show that hate each other that now must pretend to be dating? Sounds absolutely up my alley. Overall, I would say I did enjoy this book but there was something missing for me that made it hard to stay engaged in the story.

I like how both Nina and Leo are not perfect and both have to do a lot of growing throughout the book. I found Nina's "no second chances" sort of attitude really relatable and I could understand why she was the way she was considering the way the media has treated her (unfairly so). I liked getting to know Leo, who had a lot more happening under the surface and at the same time, doesn't always fully understand how his words or actions can affect the people around him. While I liked both of them together and thought they had great chemistry together, I just didn't care as much about their individual life or friendships outside of each other. Which is a strange thing to say considering side characters are usually the characters I pay the most attention to and always want more. I found myself wanting to skim multiple times while reading just to get to a scene where Nina and Leo were together and I could get more romance. As the story progressed I definitely got more of the romance and found myself eagerly flipping the page but it took a little too long for me to get there to fully be in love with this book.

All in all, I'm glad I read this book and I'd definitely be interested in future books by this author!

This story was not for me. I wanted to love it. I really did, but it fell flat. This was supposed to be an enemies to lovers, fake dating story but none of it was believable.

The saddest part for me was that there was some serious potential here.

This book has all the best tropes: enemies to lovers, fake dating, and cooking! Loved everything about it! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

This book has all the elements I generally love: enemies to lovers, fake dating, a cooking competition and it's set in my adopted city. However, I found myself DNF-ing at 13%.

The pacing didn't work for me and the foundation of Leo calling Nina "Nasty Nina" on live TV was a real turn-off. I am so over men who belittle women, even in fiction.

I would consider trying this again sometime but this wasn't the right time for me and this book.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

When Nina and Leo need to figure out a way to put their differences aside and trick the media into thinking they're in love, they find that their relationship goes beyond the snarky comments and bitter stares they're used to. But what will they do about it? For Butter or Worse has all the best tropes wrapped in the cutest romance ever. Workplace rivals-to-lovers with fake-dating and plenty of comedy means I couldn't put this one down. Thank you so much to NetGalley and Erin La Rosa's team for the perfect summer ARC!

I am a sucker for food/cooking romances! Add in fake dating, enemies-to-lovers, and food puns and I am in love. I love how these two had a history and weren’t just thrown into a fake dating scheme. I love how despite their best intentions they slowly opened up to each other in real ways. The banter and food talk was amazing. What I really loved was talking about the issue women have in male-dominated fields and how hard it is to work through sexist remarks and behavior. Both of them grew and I loved it!

For Butter or Worse features Chef Nina Lyon and a chain restaurant owner, Leo O'Donnell. Nina dreams of cooking her way to culinary stardom and becoming a household name. She thought she would achieve this by hosting The Next Cooking Champ! but she and her co-host Leo O'Donnell go together like water and oil. Nina has enough of his remarks and obnoxious behaviour, and quits on live TV so she can focus on keeping her restaurant open. Leo approaches her to apologize, knowing he has overstepped, but he trips and falls into her, and a photo is taken of what looks like a passionate kiss. The next thing they know, they are an internet sensation and everyone thinks they are in a secret relationship. A plan is hatched to help both of their businesses. They will pretend to be a couple in order to help each other.

This book has two of my favourite tropes: enemies to lovers, fake dating. When there is as much emotions between two people as there was with Nina and Leo, you know it will sizzle when changed from hate to attraction. As this book began, I really didn't like either of the main characters. They were both a bit obnoxious and closed up. As they get to know each other, they begin to open up and share things from their pasts and feelings and emotions they are dealing with. This made them relatable and much more likable. There is some humour in this book and a lot of witty banter, but there are also more serious issues. Themes include sexism in the world of cooking and chefs, mental health issues, parental issues (interference, expectations, not letting family down), hardships for business owners, as well as friendship, romance and cooking. The food in the book sounds amazing, so I recommend you not read this when you are hungry. My one issue (it is a personal one) were the rather descriptive bedroom scenes. I did skip them, and it didn't diminish the story at all for me. If you enjoy women's fiction, with some romance and steamy scenes, then I definitely recommend you pick this one up!

3.5 stars I want to start off by saying this is a good book. I appreciated the anxiety and panic attack representation and Leo's honesty and openness about it. I think the problem for me is that I had different expectations for what the story would be. I guess I didn't read the synopsis thoroughly or I thought Nina only quit as a threat. I thought the setting would be the cooking show and that these two would be bickering throughout the entire book. I felt the enemies part ended early and mainly became faking dating. I really liked all the characters but I found the miscommunication to be a little frustrating and easily resolved with one conversation. Overall, it was a good read despite how my review may sound. I will read more by this author in the future.

Another enemies to lovers romance👀 it’s started off cute and the aggression was a fun read but then it became to melodramatic for me. It had a lot of promise but didn’t really work for me and I ended up skimming some of it.

Thank you Harlequin Trade Publishing for the early reading copy via Netgalley. Review contains my own thoughts & opinions.

For Butter or Worse is a fantastic foodie romance with lots of heart and reality! Nina and Leo are co-hosts on a cooking show and h-a-t-e each other. To help their careers, they start fake dating and find out that maybe they really don't hate each other so much...

I loved that the romance dove into real-life issues, too, such as grief related to past parental loss and anxiety. Nina and Leo's chemistry was off-the-charts fantastic and it's a bit of a slow burn! They had great family and friends to round out the book, too.

I recommend this one if you love an enemies-to-lovers, workplace, foodie, or fake dating trope and chemistry that leaps off the page.

This book was just OK for me. I thought the connection between the two main characters didn't feel authentic and they kept talking about hating/being attracted and I just didn't feel it through the story. I also could have used a lot more spice. If you're going to give it, give it!

Nina and Leo were working together on a cooking show when Nina announces live on the air that she’s quitting. But when Nina quits, it affects his approval rating too and his job. Their publicists approach them and suggest that the best move for both Nina and Leo is to pretend they are dating. It will make them both more likable. Both of them have restaurants that are struggling and they need all the help they can get so they agree. At first, they are definitely enemies. But soon we have the enemies to lovers storyline in addition to the fake dating storyline.

With a clever title, the promise of delicious food and romance, I was excited for this book! For Butter or Worse introduces us to Nina (ambitious, successful chef) and Leo (restaurant chain owner) in the height of their seeming hate for each other. If you love good food, enemies-to-lovers, fake dating to real feelings, and a satisfying ending, you will find this an enjoyable read. The characters learn to love themselves (and each other) by the end of the book. In addition to some hot steamy scenes, there is so much more to the story. The book touches on workplace harassment and sexism, mental health, and more.

Thanks to Harlequin and NetGalley for an ARC to read! #ForButterorWorse #NetGalley

For Butter or Worse is a fun romance with plenty of spicy tension. Nina is a chef and judge/host of a tv cooking competition. Leo is her co-host and bane of her existence. Fed up with Leo, Nina quits to focus on her restaurant and career. When Leo shows up at her restaurant looking for an explanation, things suddenly become complicated. This book is a friends to lovers story and includes fake dating. The banter between the characters is quite good and La RosA's use of social media posts to bring insight and humor really works well. The characters are a bit one dimentional, but I did like that La Rosa brought into play the struggle of females in the world of the professional chef. Over all a fun read. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC and th opportunity to read and review For Butter or Worse.

2.5* I have really even loving the baking trend in romance books lately and was therefore excited to give this one a go. Enemies to lovers is not my favorite trope but I’m always down for some fake dating. The relationship was cute enough and the set up alright, The main characters` ambition in their crafts were equally strong and refreshingly unique. However their personalities were a little stale when otherwise not dominated by their single expressed personality trait. The whole fake dating and enemies to lovers set ups felt very lame and underwhelming. These are tropes that can be really fun but this book relied too heavily on them without trying to make them believable or unique to the book at all. The banter was great and the female empowerment/feminist undertones were a pleasant surprise.

Chef Nina Lyon is tired of being underestimated in the male-dominated cooking world. She co-hosts a competitive reality TV series "The Next Cooking Champ!" with obnoxious Leo O'Donnell. He always manages to get under her skin, until one day she quits on live TV. To ensure the survival of her restaurant, Nina must fake a relationship with Leo, time spent on "dates" with him directly correlates to an increase in traffic in their respective restaurants.

Books about food? YES PLEASE! This is a combination of enemies to lovers and fake dating tropes. I'm not typically a huge fan of enemies to lovers because I can find it a bit over the top but in this case because they're on reality tv, it made sense that they would play off their disdain for each other for ratings. I am a big foodie, so loved all their discussions of food and family and the restaurant biz. I liked getting to know both of the characters and I liked how the author portrayed sexism in the restaurant industry.

I recommend this book to anyone who loves food and love :)

Thank you to HQN Books for the ARC! All opinions expressed are my own.

Enemies to lovers with lots of food! I knew I had to read this one. There are also some serious topics in this one that I think are important. Plus, fake relationship and allllll the banter. I'm here for it! Plus the chemistry between Leo and Nina is HOT. Not to mention the social media coverage of these two had me laughing. I think this was a fun read that many will enjoy!

A huge thank you to the publisher for an ARC!

*Note: this is an HONEST SPOILER FREE REVIEW*

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“But most of all, I want you to be truly happy. Here’s hoping you know that…
I will always think of you.
I never disliked you.
And I never deserved a minute of your time.”

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Did i just discover one of my new favorite rom-coms? I think so. For Butter or Worse by Erin La Rosa made me laugh (more like cackle), grin like a fool, and truly feel for the characters. If you are a fan of enemies to lovers, celebrity fake dating, The Great British Bake Off, mental health representation, and Emily Henry’s books, I definitely recommend giving this story a chance.

First of all, I cannot stress enough the importance of books as such. Not only is For Butter or Worse an adorable romance/rom-com, it is truly a bigger story. It highlights important and meaningful topics that are not written about nearly enough, especially in the romance genre. Topics such as workplace sexism, anxiety, and masculinity (just to name a couple). Erin came in and told the story of two strong characters who are facing their struggles while forming a relationship.

Okay, and now per usual, I am going to simp over yet another fictional man. Leo O’Donnell. We love our sensitive boy who’s working through his anxiety. And the way he loves Nina is just *chefs kiss*.

With that being said, I can’t talk about much more without spilling the beans, but I definitely encourage everyone to give this book a try. I hope all of you find something inspiring from this story and fall in love.